Learn how to use กว่า to say "more than"
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| (Absolute Beginner Season 2 , Lesson 2 - This Thai Hotel Room is Too Small!) |
| Pim: สวัสดีค่ะ (sà-wàt-dii khâ) Pim here! |
| Ryan: Ryan here! Absolute Beginner Season 2 , Lesson 2 - This Thai Hotel Room is Too Small! |
| Ryan: Hello, and welcome to ThaiPOD101.com, where we study modern Thai in a fun, educational format! |
| Pim: So, brush up on the Thai that you started learning long ago, or start learning today. |
| Ryan: Thanks for being here with us for this lesson, Pim, what are we looking at in this lesson? |
| Ryan: In this lesson you'll will learn how to use กว่า (gwàa) to say “more than”. |
| Pim: This conversation takes place at a guesthouse near Khao San Rd. |
| Ryan: The conversation is between an American tourist, Dan, and the guesthouse desk staff. |
| Pim: The speakers are strangers, therefore they will be speaking polite Thai. |
| Ryan: Let’s listen to the conversation. |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: สวัสดีค่ะ ยินดีต้อนรับสู่แมงโกเฮ้าส์ค่ะ (sà-wàt-dii khâ. yin-dii-dtâawn-ráp sùu maaeng-goo-háo khâ.) |
| แดน: สวัสดีครับ มีห้องว่างไหมครับ (sà-wàt-dii khráp. mii hâwng wâang mái khráp.) |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: มีค่ะ (mii khâ.) |
| แดน: ขอดูห้องหน่อยได้ไหมครับ (khǎaw duu hâwng nàwy dâai mǎi khráp.) |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: ได้เลยค่ะ (dâai looei khâ.) |
| (เสียงเดิน และเปิดประตูห้อง) |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: เป็นยังไงบ้างคะ (bpen yang-ngai bâang khá.) |
| แดน: เอ่อ....มีห้องที่ใหญ่กว่านี้ไหมครับ (òoe...mii hâwng thîi yài gwàa níi mái khráp.) |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: มีค่ะ (mii khâ.) |
| (เสียงเดิน และเปิดประตูห้อง) |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: ห้องนี้เป็นยังไงคะ (hâwng níi bpen yang-ngai khá) |
| แดน: อืมมม...ห้องนี้ดีกว่าเยอะเลยครับ งั้นเอาห้องนี้แล้วกันครับ (uuem...hâwng níi dii gwàa yóe looei khráp. ngán ao hâwng níi láaeo gan khráp.) |
| English Host: Once again, slowly. |
| Thai Host: อีกครั้ง ช้า ๆ (ìik khráng cháa cháa) |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: สวัสดีค่ะ ยินดีต้อนรับสู่แมงโกเฮ้าส์ค่ะ (sà-wàt-dii khâ. yin-dii-dtâawn-ráp sùu maaeng-goo-háo khâ.) |
| แดน: สวัสดีครับ มีห้องว่างไหมครับ (sà-wàt-dii khráp. mii hâwng wâang mái khráp.) |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: มีค่ะ (mii khâ.) |
| แดน: ขอดูห้องหน่อยได้ไหมครับ (khǎaw duu hâwng nàwy dâai mǎi khráp.) |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: ได้เลยค่ะ (dâai looei khâ.) |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: เป็นยังไงบ้างคะ (bpen yang-ngai bâang khá.) |
| แดน: เอ่อ....มีห้องที่ใหญ่กว่านี้ไหมครับ (òoe...mii hâwng thîi yài gwàa níi mái khráp.) |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: มีค่ะ (mii khâ.) |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: ห้องนี้เป็นยังไงคะ (hâwng níi bpen yang-ngai khá) |
| แดน: อืมมม...ห้องนี้ดีกว่าเยอะเลยครับ งั้นเอาห้องนี้แล้วกันครับ (uuem...hâwng níi dii gwàa yóe looei khráp. ngán ao hâwng níi láaeo gan khráp.) |
| English Host: Once again, with the English. |
| Thai Host: อีกครั้ง พร้อมภาษาอังกฤษ (ìik khráng phráawm phaa-săa ang-grìt) |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: สวัสดีค่ะ ยินดีต้อนรับสู่แมงโกเฮ้าส์ค่ะ (sà-wàt-dii khâ. yin-dii-dtâawn-ráp sùu maaeng-goo-háo khâ.) |
| Ryan: Hello. Welcome to Mango House. |
| แดน: สวัสดีครับ มีห้องว่างไหมครับ (sà-wàt-dii khráp. mii hâwng wâang mái khráp.) |
| Ryan: Hello. Do you have any vacant rooms? |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: มีค่ะ (mii khâ.) |
| Ryan: Yes, we do. |
| แดน: ขอดูห้องหน่อยได้ไหมครับ (khǎaw duu hâwng nàwy dâai mǎi khráp.) |
| Ryan: May I see the room? |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: ได้เลยค่ะ (dâai looei khâ.) |
| Ryan: Yes, of course. |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: เป็นยังไงบ้างคะ (bpen yang-ngai bâang khá.) |
| Ryan: How is it? |
| แดน: เอ่อ....มีห้องที่ใหญ่กว่านี้ไหมครับ (òoe...mii hâwng thîi yài gwàa níi mái khráp.) |
| Ryan: Uh... Do you have any rooms bigger than this? |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: มีค่ะ (mii khâ.) |
| Ryan: Yes, we do. |
| พนักงานเกสต์เฮ้าส์: ห้องนี้เป็นยังไงคะ (hâwng níi bpen yang-ngai khá) |
| Ryan: How is this room? |
| แดน: อืมมม...ห้องนี้ดีกว่าเยอะเลยครับ งั้นเอาห้องนี้แล้วกันครับ (uuem...hâwng níi dii gwàa yóe looei khráp. ngán ao hâwng níi láaeo gan khráp.) |
| Ryan: Hmm... This room is much better. I'll take this room. |
| Ryan: Khru Pim, could you explain what a guesthouse is. We really don’t have them in America. Is it like you stay as a guest in somebody’s house? |
| Pim: No, not really. If you want to stay as a guest in a regular Thai family’s house, then you need to look for a homestay. A guesthouse is usually more like a small, cheap hotel. But a lot of them are run by the owner and their family. |
| Ryan: I see. So, aside from being cheaper than a hotel, are there any other benefits to staying at a guesthouse? |
| Pim: Well, especially with smaller guesthouses, the owners are usually very friendly and helpful. They can give you all the information you need about the local area. Or if you have a special interest such as taking a Thai cooking class, going diving, or going on a trek to hill-tribe villages, the guesthouse can help arrange it for you. |
| Ryan: That sounds good. What about food? |
| Pim: Well, that definitely depends upon which guesthouse you go to. But for many of them, they actually depend on food and drink sales for a large part of their income since the room rates are so low. So, sometimes they have an excellent restaurant attached. But some of the really small places might not have too much. |
| Ryan: OK, and what do you think about checking the room first like our character Dan did in the conversation? |
| Pim: That’s always a good idea since you never can be sure what you’re going to get. But these days it’s also getting easier to find the best guesthouses by checking online review sites. |
| Ryan: Good point. So if you had a great experience at some little, out of the way guesthouse, you could help out both the owner and other travellers by posting a review of it on the web. OK then, let’s move on to the vocabulary. |
| Ryan: The first word we shall see is: |
| Pim: ยินดีต้อนรับ(yin-dii-dtâawn-ráp) [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: Welcome |
| Pim: ยินดีต้อนรับ(yin-dii-dtâawn-ráp) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Pim: ยินดีต้อนรับ(yin-dii-dtâawn-ráp) [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Pim: สู่(sùu) [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: to |
| Pim: สู่(sùu) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Pim: สู่(sùu) [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Pim: ห้อง(hâwng) [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: room |
| Pim: ห้อง(hâwng) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Pim: ห้อง(hâwng) [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Pim: ว่าง( wâang) [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: free, vacant |
| Pim: ว่าง( wâang) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Pim: ว่าง( wâang) [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Pim: ดู(duu) [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: to look, to watch |
| Pim: ดู(duu) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Pim: ดู(duu) [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Pim: ใหญ่(yài) [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: big |
| Pim: ใหญ่(yài) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Pim: ใหญ่(yài) [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Pim: กว่า(gwàa) [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: more than |
| Pim: กว่า(gwàa) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Pim: กว่า(gwàa) [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Pim: นี้(níi) [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: this |
| Pim: นี้(níi) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Pim: นี้(níi) [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Pim: เยอะ(yóe) [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: many, much |
| Pim: เยอะ(yóe) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Pim: เยอะ(yóe) [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Pim: เอา(ao) [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: to take, to get |
| Pim: เอา(ao) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Pim: เอา(ao) [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: Let's have a closer look at the usage for some of the words and phrases from this lesson. The first phrase we’ll look at is.... |
| Pim: ยินดีต้อนรับสู่... (yin-dii-dtâawn-ráp sùu…) |
| Ryan: This means “Welcome to...(some place)”. This is something that is said to greet a customer. You might also hear just the first part by itself, meaning “welcome”. And what was the first part? |
| Pim: ยินดีต้อนรับ(yin-dii-dtâawn-ráp) |
| Ryan: “Welcome”, or the other way, “Welcome to...”... |
| Pim: ยินดีต้อนรับสู่(yin-dii-dtâawn-ráp sùu…) |
| Ryan: Next is a way of constructing a request... |
| Pim: ขอ...หน่อยได้ไหม (khǎaw ... nàuy dâai mái) |
| Ryan: This is a polite and humble way to ask for permission to do something. ขอ (khǎaw) is the verb “to ask for”. It’s followed by whatever you are requesting to do. And then that is followed by หน่อยได้ไหม (nàuy dâai mái). |
| Pim: หน่อย (nàuy) means “a little”, and it’s used here to make the request sound less demanding. |
| Ryan: So what was the example from the conversation? |
| Pim: ขอดูห้องหน่อยได้ไหม (khǎaw duu hâwng nàuy dâai mái.) |
| Ryan: “May I see the room?” And the next phrase is... |
| Pim: เป็นยังไงบ้าง (bpen yang-ngai bâang) |
| Ryan: This means “How is it?” |
| Pim: Right, but it could also be used to ask “How’s everything with you?” |
| Ryan: So, we know เป็น (bpen) is the verb “to be”. And ยังไง (yang-ngai) is just a more natural spoken form of อย่างไร (yàang-rai) which means “how?”. Well, if เป็นยังไง (bpen yang-ngai) already means “How is it?”, what do we need the last word for? |
| Pim: The last word, บ้าง (bâang), means “any” or “some”. It is used in questions when you want to elicit specific information or a list of items as a response. |
| Ryan: Oh, OK, so when you ask your friend คุณเป็นยังไงบ้าง (khun bpen yang-ngai bâang) the meaning is “How’s everything with you?” not just “How are you?” |
| Pim: Right. |
| Ryan: And finally, we have a kind of abbreviation... |
| Pim: งั้น (ngán) |
| Ryan: This is a short form of the phrase ถ้าอย่างนั้น (thâa-yàang-nán), meaning “In that case”. It’s used at the beginning of a sentence just like you’d say “Well in that case” or “Well then” in English. Ok, now let’s move on to the grammar. |
| Ryan: The focus of this lesson’s grammar is using กว่า (gwàa) to form comparative adjectives. |
| Pim: We can put กว่า (gwàa) after any adjective to change it into a comparative adjective. |
| Ryan: So this is just like adding “-er” or saying “more...than” in English. As in “taller” or “more beautiful than”. When comparing two nouns, the word order is the same as in English. The basic pattern is the first noun, then an adjective + กว่า (gwàa), then the second noun. Let’s use “taller” as an example. |
| Pim: OK, so do you remember the word for “tall”. |
| Ryan: (pause) สูง (sǔung) |
| Pim: Right. So สูงกว่า (sǔung gwàa) then means “taller”. Now how would you say “I’m taller than you.” |
| Ryan: (pause) ผมสูงกว่าคุณ (phŏm sǔung gwàa khun) |
| Pim: Very good. Now women listeners, remember that you have to change the pronoun “I” to the female version. So you’d say ดิฉันสูงกว่าคุณ (dì-chăn sǔung gwàa khun) |
| Ryan: OK, let’s try another adjective. What is “beautiful” in Thai? |
| Pim: สวย (sŭuai) Now make sure you say this word with a rising tone. If you say ซวย (suuai) with a middle tone it means “unlucky”. |
| Ryan: Oh, good point. That is not a mistake that you’d ever want to make when paying someone a compliment. So once again the correct pronunciation for “beautiful” is... |
| Pim: สวย (sŭuai). So then สวยกว่า (sŭuai gwàa) means... |
| Ryan: “more beautiful than”. Alright, what are the words for “younger sister” and “older sister”? |
| Pim: น้องสาว (náawng-sǎao) is “younger sister”, and พี่สาว (phîi-sǎao) is “older sister”. |
| Ryan: Ready listeners? How would you say “My younger sister is more beautiful than my older sister.” (pause) And, Khru Phim the answer is? |
| Pim: น้องสาวสวยกว่าพี่สาว (náawng-sǎao sǔuai gwàa phîi-sǎao). |
| Ryan: Did you get it right? Let’s hear it one more time. Listeners please repeat after Khru Pim. “My younger sister is more beautiful than my older sister.” |
| Pim: น้องสาวสวยกว่าพี่สาว (náawng-sǎao sǔuai gwàa phîi-sǎao). |
| Ryan: (pause) Now, just like in English, the second noun in a comparison can be omitted if it is already known from previous context. For example, maybe I want to say “My mother is (very) fat. But my father is fatter.” |
| Pim: Well, if you don’t mind picking on your parents, we can go ahead and use this example. The word for “mother” is คุณแม่ (khun-mâae)and “father” is คุณพ่อ (khun-phâaw). |
| Ryan: Alright, so then what’s the word for “fat”? |
| Pim: อ้วน (ûuan) |
| Ryan: อ้วน And to make “very fat” we just say อ้วนมาก (ûuan mâak) right? |
| Pim: Yes. So คุณแม่อ้วนมาก (khun-mâae ûuan mâak) means... |
| Ryan: “Mother is very fat”. Then อ้วนกว่า (ûuan gwàa) could mean “fatter”. |
| Pim: Right again. So the last half of your sentence would be แต่คุณพ่ออ้วนกว่า. |
| Ryan: “But father is fatter”. Alright can we hear the whole thing put together? Listeners, repeat after Khru Pim, “My mother (very) is fat. But my father is fatter.” |
| Pim: คุณแม่อ้วนมาก แต่คุณพ่ออ้วนกว่า (khun-mâae ûuan mâak. dtàae khun-phâaw ûuan gwàa). |
| Ryan: Ok, That’s all for this lesson. |
| Pim: มีคำถามอะไรไหมคะ (láaeo phóp gan mái khâ) |
| Ryan: Do you have any questions? |
| Pim: If you do, please ask us in the comment section. แล้วพบกันใหม่ค่ะ (láaeo phóp gan mài khâ) |
| Ryan: See you next time. |
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